Baby chair



F. M. COBB BABY CHAIR Filed Juiy 11. 19g@ 2 shams-sheet 1 F. M. CQBB Aug. s, 1939.

BABY CHAIR F'iled July 1l. 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l 30 place.

Patented Aug. s, 1939A s PATENT OFFICE BABY CHAIR Fannie Mae Cobb,` Smyrna, Ga.

Application July 11,

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in chairs, and more particularly to that type which is especially adapted for use in the care of small children., although same is not restricted to such use.

The primary important object of this invention Vis to provide, a device of the above character which affords lcomplete support and comfort for the back of a'n infant too young to sit alone. l

Another important object of this invention is to provide a chair of the above character which is so constructed as to entirely eliminate the necessity for the use of straps or other harness to hold the baby therein.

Another important object of this invention is to provide an ambulant chair of the above character composed in part of metal and in which the danger of tipping or turning over is substantially eliminated.

Another important object of this invention is to provide a chair of the above character in which the tray, seat, and back portions comprise a unitary fabric structure which may be readily detached from its supporting frame for launder- 25 ing or other purposes.

Another important 4object of this invention is to provide a chair ofthe above character which is readily collapsible into compact form for storage purposes or for transportation from place to A further important object of this invention is to provide a device of the above character which is of simple construction, and one which may be readily and cheaply manufactured and 35 placed upon the market at a reasonable cost.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of this invention will be readily apparent throughout the course of the following description and accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective View of the chair in its complete form,

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the chair with a portion of the unitary fabric member cut away 4 to show the tray supporting frame and one of 5 the folding brace connections between the front and rear frames,

Fig. 3 is afront elevation of the chair in its complete form,

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the chair in its folded position,

Fig. 5 is-a fragmentary sectional view taken on line 6--6 of Fig. 3, showing a portion of the unitary fabric member and supporting frame,

65 Fig. 6 is a plan view of the blank forming the 1936, Serial N0. 90,134

(Cl. 15S- 124) tray, seat. and back portions of the fabric member,

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the blank forming one side wall of the seat,

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the blank forming the lother side wall 0f the seat,

Fig. 9 is a plan view of the blank forming the rear portion of the seat back,

Fig. 10 is a plan view of the blank forming the front and sides of the tray portion of the unitary fabric member,

Fig. l1 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation of the support for the rear axle of the chair, and

Fig. 12 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation of the support for the front axle of the chair.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the chairA generally comprises a pair of frames A and B, composed of strip or channel metal, or any other suitable material.

The frame A is bent into substantially inverted U-form so as to provide a back portion i and integral front leg portions 2. The free ends of` each of the front leg portions 2 are bent outwardly, downwardly, and inwardly as at 3, and the outwardly and inwardly bent portions are provided with vertically alined openings (not shown).

The bent portions 3 of the front legs in effect, provide inwardly facing opposed recesses or sockets 4, each to receive one end of a transversely extending brace bar y5. 'The bar 5 is also provided adjacent each of its ends with an opening to register with the vertically alined openings formed through each of the bent portions 3 of the front legs so vas to provide a bearing. Rollers or other anti-friction members 6 are provided, each having a pintle 'l adapted to be passed vertically through each set of alined openings in each bent portion 3 and the adjacent enci of the bar 5, and secured by a nut or any other suitable fastener 8. This arrangement connects and 2braces the lower end portions of the front legs Connecting and supported by the .front legs intermediate -the ends of the latter is a transversely extending foot rest 9 having each of its ends provided with a right angle bracket i0.

Each of the brackets Il) has its free end formed with an opening to receive a detachable bolt Il which passes therethrough and through one of the spaced openings i2 formed in the front legs, whereby the foot rest may be adjusted to suit the convenience of the occupant of the chair.

The metal frame B is also bent into substantially inverted U form, so that the sides thereof provide rear legs I3. The bight portion of the frame B is bent at an angle to the leg portions thereof so as to provide a substantially horizontal tray support I l. The frames A and B are pivotally connected together by rivets I5.

In order to limit hinged movement of the frames A and B away from each other and to hold the frames in their operative position.- each of their adjacent side portions are connected together by folding braces I6, the latter being con- .structed so as to break ,in an upward direction.

The rear ends of the braces I6 are hingedly connected to the back portion of frame A by rivets while their front ends are connected to the frame Bo by a transversely extending detachable brace rod I1, which latter also forms the inner or rear side of the tray portion I4. Each of the lower free ends of the rear legs I3 are curved outwardly and downwardly as at I3 and provided with alined openings to receive a transversely extending axle I8 to which rollers I9 are connected, and which axle also serves to brace and to prevent spreading movement of the rear legs.

The detachable unitary fabric structure, the several parts of which are disclosed in Figs. 6 to 10 inclusive and which forms the back, seat, and tray of the chair, comprises a one-piece main blank C divided into a back portion 20, a seat portion 2 I, and a tray portion 22. In the description of the yseveral parts of the unitary fabric structure and the method of connecting same to each other, like reference characters in Figs. 6 to 10, indicate like parts.

Secured to the rear face of the back portion 2i) along the line of stitching c, indicated in dotted lines, in Figs. 6 and 9 is a part 23, which together with the back portion 20 provides a downwardly facing pocket to receive the bight portion of the frame A. The line of stitching c extends from notches a to b as indicated in Figs. 6 and 9.

The part 24 indicated in Fig. 8 forms the side of the chair to the right of the occupant and is connected along its rear edge to that portion of the back 2U which extends from notch a to point c by a line of stitching d, while the bottom edge of part 24 is connected to the right edge of the seat portion 2I by a line of stitching e extending from points c to f in each of Figs. 6 and 8.

The seat portion 2| is connected to the tray portion 22 by a strip 25 having cut-outs 26- on either side thereof to receive the legs of theyoccupant when the chair is in use.

The front edge of the part 2l is connected to the side of strip 25 by a line of stitching g extending from points h to i in each of the Figs. 6 and 8. The tray portion 22 is then folded downwardly along line :i until line 1c registers with line l, whereupon the fabric is stitched along the meeting lines k and l so as to provide an open ended transverse sleeve 21 as shown in Figs. 1 and 5.

The flap m, of part 2l is folded outwardly and downwardly along fold line n to provide a valance which is connected along its rear edge by stitching o between points a and p to the free portion q of the part 23.

The upstanding front and sides of the tray 22 I are formed by the part 28 folded along' line r which further provides an overhanging valance s. The part 28 is secured along its bottom edge to the front and side edges of the tray portion 22 by a line of stitching t extending from points u to v, while substantially the lower one-half of the rear edge is secured to the front side of the sleeve 21 and substantially its upper one-half to the forward edge of valance m oi part 24.-

The connection of part 29, shown in Fig. 7, which is the left side of the chair when facing forwardly, is accomplished in a manner similar to the description for connecting the right side for preventing the accidental displacement of the latter.

In the operation of setting up the chair and attaching the unitary fabric supporting structure thereto, the frames A and B are moved away from each other about their pivots I5. The unitary fabric structure for supporting the infant, and which includes the back, seat, and tray portions, is then placed over the frames so that the bight portion of frame A is received in the downwardly facing pocket of said back portion, while the seat and tray portions are disposed over the braces I6 and upper portions of frame B so as to be supported by and to conceal these parts.

' The transverse brace rod I1 is partially removed and then replaced so as to extend through the sleeve 2l, to thereby prevent removal of the fabric supporting structure from the frames in an upward direction upon removal of an infant from the chair. As a further aid in securing the tray portion of the bight portion of frame B, the cords or tapes 3f! are provided for use in the manner indicated in the drawings.

To collapse the chairl for storage or transporting purposes, it is merely necessary to break the braces in an upward direction as shown in Fig. 4.

In order to remove the unitary fabric supporting structure for laundering or replacement, the cords 30 are unfastened and the transverse brace rod I1 is partially Withdrawn so that the sleeve 21 may be slipped therefrom, thereby permitting the entire structure to be removed in an upward direction.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown and described, is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and that various changes in the shape, size, and arrangement of parts may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit of my invention, or the scope of the subjoined claims.

Y Having thus -described my invention, I claim:

1. A chair of the character described, including a pair of inverted crossed substantially U- shaped frames pivotally connected together, one of said frames having its bight portion bent at an angle to the sides thereof, folding brace members connecting the sides of the frames for limiting movement of the frames away from each other, a fabric seat and back supported by the frames including a forward extension providing a tray portion supported by the angularly bent portion of the said one of the frames, and a transverse brace member connecting the sides of the last named frame and extending through a fold connecting the tray portion to the seat portion.

2. In a chair of the character described, including a pair of crossed inverted substantially U-shaped frames pivotally connected together 2,168,513 .intermediate their ends,y means foi limiting movement of the frames away from each other, one of said frames `forming the back and front legs of the chair, the free ends of the sides thereof being bent outwardly, downwardly and inwardly to form inwardly facing sockets, the outwardly and inwardly extending portions of the sockets having alined openings therethrough, a transverse brace bar having each of its free ends disposed inone of said sockets and having an opening for alinement with the openings in the adjacent socket, and a caster for each of the front legs of the chair having a part disposed through the alined openings in the adjacent socket and brace bar.

3. A chair of the character described, comprising a pair of inverted substantially U-shaped crossedvframes pivotally connected together intermediate their ends, foiding means connecting the adjacent sides of the frames to limit movement thereof away from each other, one of said frames providing the back and front legs ofthe chair, the other of said frames having its bight portion bent forwardly at an angle to the sides thereof to provide a tray support and the rear legs of the chair, a fabric body supporting structure disposed over the bight portions of the frames and having a forwardly extending part formed to provide a depending tray disposed through the tray support of the last named frame, a transverse brace rod connecting the sides of the last named frame rearwardly of the front ends thereof and extending through a fold of the fabric structure adjacent the rear of the tray to support the rear wall of the latter and to connect the fabric structure to the frames,

and a caster carried by each of said legs.

FANNIE MAE COBB. 

